Fuminshou Okahiki
by ShadowInTheHall
Summary: L's only friend from his days at the orphanage shows up at a house he's staying at, and he doesn't remember her. Not yet. LxOc MattxMello later.
1. First Day Back

"Uh...Ryuzaki?" the girl in the bed asked. The boy at the vanity; black spiky hair, black misted eyes, white long-sleeved shirt, wrinkled jeans, turned from his laptop.

"Yes? What is it, Inazuma?" he asked.

"Oh, uh, I'm done with these." She motioned to a packet, labled to be an IQ test. "And please, just call me Ameko."

"Very well, Ameko." Ryuzaki rose and took the papers from Ameko's hand to score them. She remained seated in the bed, long dark brown hair covering her face for the most part, her grey eyes tracing the map of veins on her arm.

Ameko Inazuma had been, two nights before, incoherently ranting, wandering the grounds of the house Ryuzaki was utilizing, before collapsing in the mud. Because of the rain, an ambulance was unable to reach the house. She was brought inside, cleaned up, and put in a spare room. The following afternoon, she awakened suddenly when the maid opened the curtains all the way.

"No! Close them!" the frightened maid did so, and rushed away to make known their guest's awakening. An old man entered the room.

"Hello, young lady. I am Shizo Watake, head of kitchen staff. I've been sent to ascertain what you would like to eat."

"Oh stuff it, old man! Where am I? How did I get here? I demand to speak to the head of the household! Now!" He left quickly. After ten minutes of angry ranting, the door opened and Ryuzaki walked in. At sight of him, Ameko fell immediately silent.

"I hear you wish to speak to me?"

"Erm...I uh...Where am I?" she finished meekly.

"You are in a spare room in my house."

"Why? Who are you?"

"MY name is Hideki Ryuuga. However, you may refer to me as Ryuzaki. Last night, you were found by security wandering the grounds. Then, you collapsed."

"Oh. I'm sorry. To impose, I mean." Ameko lowered her gaze. Ryuzaki tilted his head.

"You're very strange, you know..."

"What?"

"When you awoke, you were loud and yelled, and from what I can see, threw objects about."

"I'm sorry."

"But," he continued,"when I entered the room, you fell silent and are now apologizing for everything. Is there something going on that I don't know about?" Before Ameko could respond, her stomach made a loud noise. She cringed.

"You don't happen to have...uh...some strawberry cake? No, nevermind. Tea is fine."

"Well, we don't have any cake, but I do have some donuts." Ryuzaki offered.

"Oh, uh, okay. Thank you." Ameko bowed her head as he left the room. Two voices were warring in her head.  
'What was that all about?'  
'Yelling wasn't necessary.'  
'Oh, so you _like _him? Puh-leeze!'  
'What's more pathetic? Him, or your fear of the dark?' Just then, the first voice noticed that they were in almost total darkness.  
'Get up! You have to open a curtain!'

"Why?" Ameko asked out loud.  
'So you're not in the black. You remember what the black means, right?'  
'Stop, Kori. You're scaring her.'  
'Be quiet, Shino. Ameko, you remember the black, yes?' Ameko rose at the sound of the man's voice. Her right leg had a stabbing pain. When she lifted the nightgown to inspect it, Ameko saw blood seeping through bandages.'The curtain.' Kori egged. Ameko limped to the wall of windows and opened the drapes far enough to allow two inches of light to stream into the room. She made her way back to the bed.

"Would you two stop talking so loudly?" Her knees were pulled up to her chest, hands resting on her knees. Ryuzaki entered with a tray supporting donuts, coffee, cream, and sugar.

"We're out of tea right now. I hope you don't mind."

"No, not at all." Then, as if forgetting something, she added "My name is Ameko Inazuma. Please call me Ameko." Ryuzaki sat on the vanity bench in the same fashion Ameko sat on the bed. She picked up a chocolate glazed donut and proceeded to lick the glaze off before eating it. To the coffee, she added six sugar cubes and drank it slowly."Thank you, Ryuzaki."

"No problem, Miss Inazuma. The physician said you are not fit to move for at least three days. In the morning, would you mind taking a few tests?"

"Not at all. I would be glad to. Um...May I ask what kind of tests these are?"

"Of course. They're intelligence tests. Have you ever had one before?"

"Oh, an IQ test?" Ameko sounded dismayed.

"You don't have to take it if you don't want. I'm just interested in seeing where people sit."

"It's alright." Ameko sighed."I fear that I suffer from paranoia. Some have called me crazy." Ameko took another sip of coffee. "I have had an IQ test, but the result was around 184, so I can't be that smart."

"Miss Inazuma, that score makes you a genius." Ryuzaki informed her.

"Oh."she said, shocked. "Um, Ryuzaki?"

"Hm?"

"Are you sure it's three days until I can move?"

"The physician said three, but it could be more."

"Oh, because I was walking around before you came back. My leg was fine."

"Very well. I shall get him back to reexamine you." He glanced at the clock on the wall. "Try to sleep some more, and I'll wake you for dinner. Is there anything in particular you want? Beef, fish, chicken...?"

"Whatever you're making will be fine. Nothing special, please." Ameko replied.

"To be honest, I only care to eat sweet things. Cake, candy, donuts...So your meal will be along those lines."

"That's no problem at all, Ryuzaki. I love cake and candy." Ameko smiled.

"Very well. Get some rest." He left the room. Ameko sighed miserably.

"Shino, what is it? Why?" she asked.  
'Why what?'

"Why do I bend to whatever this Ryuzaki says? I don't get it."  
'Because...Do you know who he is?" Ameko sighed.

"No. How the heck am I supposed to know that? Whatever." She sighed, again.  
'Get some rest.' Shino said.

* * *

At seven o'clock, Ameko was awakened by someone opening the door. The person, not Ryuzaki, walked in, set a tray on the vanity, and turned the small lamp on. They walked back out the door.

"Curious…" she muttered under her breath. "Oh well." On the tray was a cup of instant ramen, a thermos of hot water, two small cakes and a cup of coffee. "Ooh, yay." Ameko poured the water into the ramen and began eating a cake. She didn't want to use the chopsticks, so she picked up a long spoon on the side of the tray. Kori stayed quiet, and Shino hummed a child's lullaby. After Ameko finished eating, she opened up the curtain to let the moonlight in."Black night, blue light, every colour of the sky…" Shino and Ameko sung in unison.

"Oh, you're awake." Ameko turned sharply. Ryuzaki stood at the door. "Contented Distraction, right?"

"Huh?"

"That song. It's called Contented Distraction."

"Oh. I…I guess so." She shrugged. "Do you know it?"

"Yes. The singer Shino Yanagi sings it. She went missing six months ago."

"Oh. I don't think I've heard of her. Anyway, was there something you needed?" Ameko shook her hair out of her face.

"Yes. I wanted to see if you were awake yet. You have a nice voice, by the way." Ryuzaki added.

"Uh," she stared down at the carpet, "yeah…Hey, I had a black backpack…"

"I'll have it returned to you promptly. Is there anything else you need, Miss Inazuma?"

"Yeah…I have to use the bathroom."

"I see. This door," he pointed to a door at the end of the bed, just right of the vanity, "leads to a private bathroom. I believe there is a change of clothing should you decide to take a shower."

"Alright. Thank you." Ameko said. Ryuzaki left the room. She used the facilities and went back to sleep. In the morning, Shizo Watake, head of the kitchen staff, awakened her inadvertently by stepping in to deliver a tray of tea and her black backpack. A phone beside her bed rang. Ameko stared at it for a few seconds before tiring of the noise.

"Hello?"

"Miss Inazuma?" a strange voice asked. She didn't answer. "I am Watari. Ryuzaki informed me you agreed to some tests. Is this still correct?"

"Erm…yes. I did agree to them, and will still participate."

"Very well. I will inform him. Good day." He hung up.

"Curious…" she muttered.

* * *

"Ameko," Ryuzaki said, after the tests were complete, "you have a genius score. One hundred and ninety-seven."

"I guess that's good." she smiled softly and looked up from the map of veins on her arm. "So did you find what you were looking for?"

"What?"

"You've de-fragmented my laptop's hard drive. And gone through the binder and two folders. I'm not here to cause trouble. I remember I have a roommate, Keira, with long blue hair. She models a bit, I think."

"And how do I know you are who you say you are?" Ryuzaki asked, inclining his head. Ameko smiled.

"Curious." she muttered again. There was a boy at the orphanage she lived in. He didn't like to leave his room, and when she knocked on the door, he would ask the same question. Ameko would offer him a cookie, and he would let her in.

"What is?"

"Nothing. You wouldn't be certain I am Ameko Inazuma. And since I am not famous, at least to my knowledge, you wouldn't come up with much from an internet search." she concluded.

"Correct. Well, I suppose you may stay until well, but you may leave when you please. The phone rang again.

"Yes?"

"Inazuma, is Ryuzaki there?"

"Yes." She passed the phone to Ryuzaki, who had to move closer because the line was too short.

"Yes? Hmm, I see. Thank you, Watari." He turned to Ameko. "There's been some trouble. I need to go."

"Feel free, L, this is your home." she said. He had turned to leave, but froze.

"L? The detective?"

"Researching the Kira murders, creating a spreadsheet, and I've never seen someone so dedicated to a letter not in their name they would use it as a background." Ameko shrugged. "Whatever. I don't care if you're L or Kira. I just need to find my Keira, and my home."

"We'll finish this another time." Ryuzaki shuffled out of the room quickly. Now that she had her clothes, Ameko decided to take a shower and get out of the nightgown.


	2. Deductions and Meetings

"Watari, have you found anything on our guest?" Ryuzaki held his cell phone closer to his ear.

"As bizarre as it sounds, Ryuzaki, Ameko Inazuma may be a pseudonym for Shino Yanagi. I have accessed their medical records; both are allergic to ibuprofen, had a fractured right arm at twelve, and frequent headaches. Also, Inazuma has no birth certificate on record."

"I see. She is very bright, and has come to the conclusion that I am L. I think it would be good to have her stick around. When she leaves this afternoon, follow her."

"Yes." Watari hung up. Hopefully, if things went as planned, Ameko would join the investigation."Well, I don't actually know that much about her. Maybe asking would be a bad idea." Ryuzaki thought to himself. An hour later, the house was nearly empty. Ryuzaki went to check on Ameko. He knocked on the door."Hello?"

"Yah!" he heard faintly. He opened the door and walked in. Immediately, the back of a foot almost came crashing down on his head.

"Aah! Ryu…zaki…." Ameko lowered her leg. "I-I'm sorry. I was just….exercising." she said.

"That would have really hurt." he said thoughtfully.

"Erm, probably, yes." Ameko replied. She was wearing tight, ragged blue jeans, a long dark purple shirt, and a silver fishscale belt.

"So. Why, in your opinion, am I L?"

"Besides the previously stated?"

"Yes."

"FBI brought in from the U.S. said L is younger than a distinguished detective should be. He has weird habits such as eating patterns, and how he sits. I dunno. Sounds close enough to me. Anyway, I'm going to keep quiet, L or not. There's one Keira I'd like to find right now, and she has long blue hair. In fact," she glanced at the clock, " my cab should be here by now. Oh, and thank you again for helping me." Ameko bowed and left the room.

The cab was waiting outside. Ameko threw her backpack in before getting in herself. She glanced back at the house, and saw Ryuzaki at the window, watching the car drive away. At the apartment, Ameko found she still knew which apartment was the one she inhabited. When the door was finally opened, she discovered most of the things had been removed. Taped up papers, adorned with red arrows, led her to her room where five stacked boxes and a closet full of clothes remained. There was a note on the floor.

Ameko--If you're reading this, you're not dead. Obviously. Anyway, you disappeared in a plane crash. It's been a month, and I've gone to live with Kori in America. I know you two never really liked each other, but he's sweet to me. Anyway, after two years, I'll have to give the apartment up, but I'll make sure your stuff is safe. Maybe you can come live with me. Oh, and Harper said he could put you up in that village in Italy, if you ever wanted to move back. Uh, GreyLeaf records still wants to sign a contract. They _love_ the song Contented Distraction. 18 Magazine wants an interview, and G&B asked to have you model a new clothing line. These are messages from the machine just before you left the flight from Aoyama. When you get this, look me up and tell me how it's goin'. Can't have a night out without you here. Love you,Keira, the blue haired weirdo. © © ©

"Curious…" Ameko thought. "Didn't Ryuzaki say Contented Distraction was by…"

"Shino Yanagi." Shino said.

"Yeah. Shino Yanagi. But…wait! No freakin' way!"

"Yep. Y'know, I'm just the voice of your stage personality. Kori, too. We helped til you could remember everything. You okay?"

"Sure. I guess I can stop talking to myself now."

"At least out loud." Shino replied. Ameko folded up the note and put it in her pocket. Keira's number was on the back, and she planned to find a payphone.

Shortly after the cab left the house, Watari called Ryuzaki.

"Oh. Just in time. Ameko just left. What's up, Watari?"

"I'm heading out now, but I'd like to say I think Shino Yanagi was adopted."

"I see."

"There's no record, but when she would have been sixteen, her birth certificate was re written." Ryuzaki sighed on the other end.

"Very good. Thank you, Watari." He hung up. Watari laughed slightly, but it was an annoying habit to hang up so abruptly.

"He could at least give me a warning…" the older gentleman sighed. The cab stopped and Ameko got out. He parked on the street and waited. Twenty minutes later, she came back, looking dismayed. Watari stepped out of the car."Miss Inazuma!" he called out. As she turned her head, her dark brown hair fell into her face. Watari opened the car door for her. "Ryuzaki has sent me to pick you up." Ameko almost started toward the car, but stopped.

"Who are you? Wait, don't tell me. Watari?" He nodded.

"I'm impressed." She walked to the black vehicle.

"Don't be. Any common _deka_ could do it." Ameko slid into the backseat and Watari closed the door, reentering the car.

"Seatbelt?" Ameko groaned, but obliged."So…why did Ryuzaki send you to pick me up? I mean, it's not like I haven't gone around the city before."

"I'm not sure Miss-"

"Ameko."

"Ameko. You would pose that to him, not me. But, may I trouble you that he still has business with you?"

"Like what?"

"Once again," Watari replied, "you would pose that question to Ryuzaki himself."

"_Of_ course." They sat in silence for several minutes. "So…where are we headed? And don't tell me I have to ask Ryuu." Watari drove on, not replying. "Uh, hey!" Ameko slid to the window, having unbuckled herself. "Sunflower Street Café." she said. Watari grinned. His phone rang.

"Yes, Ryuzaki? Almost- uh hey!" Ameko had leaned forward and taken the cell phone.

"Don't you know it's dangerous to drive while talking on the phone?"

"Hello." Ryuzaki greeted her.

"Oh, don't sound so excited on _my_ behalf."

"What?"

"Why'd you have Watari pick me up? And why am I meeting you at Sunflower Street Café?"

"It's simple. They have the best cake." Ameko groaned audibly. "Is there a problem?"

"Fine, then. What additional business do I have with you?"

"I'd like you to meet a friend from To-Oh Academy. Didn't you hear? You've been accepted late."

"Wha- but I…I didn't take an entrance exam….That second test this morning…" she sighed. "Why'd you go and do that? I hate school… "

"Well, I'm sorry, but I do have my reasons. I suppose we should hang up now. You're almost here. I'm at a table straight back and around the corner. Behind the divider." He hung up.

"Hey! Ryuzaki hung up on me! I wasn't done with him! He hung up!" Ameko fumed. Watari chuckled.

"Yes, he does have a bad habit of that. May I have my phone back?" She looked down at her hand.

"Oh, yeah…sure." Ameko handed it to him.

"Do you have a phone?"

"What?"

"Do you have a cell phone?"

"No, I'm afraid."

"Well," Watari started, "I believe there's a box of phones under that seat. Pick one to your liking; Ryuzaki has instructed me to provide you with one if you don't have one already." He stopped the car in front of the café.

"Thanks." Ameko dug through the box and chose a metallic red phone. "I'll use this one. And uh, sorry about the taking your phone thing. Until later, I presume."

"Yes, most likely." Watari replied. Ameko put the phone in her pocket with Keira's note, grabbed her backpack, and started toward the café entrance. Before facing the familiarly aggravating detective, and his new 'friend', Ameko grabbed the bulk of her dark brown hair and clipped it up. Much still hung down because it wouldn't fit.

"Ugh, whatever." She walked into the restaurant and right past the woman seating people. Ryuzaki was crouched across from a boy with light brown hair and honey eyes. Ryuzaki turned around to see Ameko, and moved over so she could sit.


	3. Sunflower Street Cafe

"Who's this, Ryuga?" the other boy asked.

"My name is Yomiko Hajiyoru."

"I'm Light Yagami." Light extended his hand. Hesitantly, she took it.

"I thought you weren't going to make up names anymore." Ryuzaki had turned to face her, eyes innocently wide.

"What? Excuse me, _Ryuga._" Ameko insinuated.

"Are you insinuating something?" He challenged. The look on Ameko's face said yes.

"What could I possibly have to insinuate about?" she challenged back.

"Excuse us, Light." Ryuzaki pushed Ameko out of the booth and dragged her to the end of the hall, between the restrooms. "Hajiyoru?"

"The people who adopted me. No one knew my real name. I would make things up all the time. Then the couple, the wife wanted to call me Bellino, meaning cute in Italian. The man, though, he suggested Yomiko; child who reads."

"So how do I know-"

"That I didn't just make it up. Here's a cookie."

"Cookie?"

"Point is, you don't. Trust me or fight me. If you'd like, call me Yanagi Shino."

"You're-"

"My apartment." Ameko pulled the note from her pocket. "Here." Ryuzaki studied it.

"I see. Impressive. G&B?"

"Seriously. Sometimes I wonder." She rolled her eyes.

"Okay." He handed the note back. "Shino it is." They walked back to the table, Ameko pouting.

"Is everything alright?" Light asked.

"I lied. My name isn't Yomiko Hajiyoru. It's Shino Yanagi."

"Really? Like the famous singer? You two both have the same names as famous singers!" Light exclaimed, feigning surprise.

"No, Light. Not like the singer. She is the singer." Ryuzaki said.

"Hey, keep it _down_, Ryuz…ga. I don't need a mob right now."

"But isn't Shino dead, or at least missing? Can you prove you're her?" Ameko sighed heavily. At least _they_ had coffee.

"Well, the only song I can remember is….?" she shot a questioning glance at Ryuzaki, who was watching her. "What's it called?"

"Contented Distraction." he said in a sultry tone of voice.

"Yeah. But no I.D., sorry." she said, with no trace of apology in her voice.

"Would you demonstrate?" Light asked.

"Fine." She cleared her throat. "Black night, blue light, every colour of the sky… Fish flakes, water snakes, the world is ending; why? Could it- Could it be the cold…Could- could it be the mess? We are all in serious need of redress…" Ryuzaki looked more intrigued than before.

"Wow! That…that was just like her…You _are_ Yanagi! It's so cool to meet you!"

"No it's not. Go ahead and call me Shino." Ameko said, waving her hand. "Ryuga, I think you have to use the bathroom."

"No, I don't." he said, confused.

"Oh, but you do. Now." Ameko got up. Ryuzaki slowly got up and marched himself, classic hunched-over-hands-in-pockets pose, into the bathroom.

"Uh…what was that for?" Light asked. Ameko slid back into her seat, grabbing the sugar packets. She lifted Ryuzaki's cup and smelled it.

"Never enough…" she muttered, pouring three more sugar packets into the cup and took a drink

"Shino, what are you doing?" Light leaned forward. Ameko took another sip and stared, wide-eyed and blankly at Light.

"Curious….Sumimasen. It's nothing." Ameko wiped the sugar off the table and put the coffee back how it was. She folded her arms on the table and hung her head as Ryuzaki came shuffling out of the bathroom. Ameko looked incredibly tired.

"Are you okay?" Ryuzaki asked, unconcerned. "Hey, Shino, move please." She did nothing. Ryuzaki bent down to see if she was still awake.

"Congratulations!" Ameko jumped up and shouted, drawing attention to their table. Ryuzaki yelled and fell backward. Light stared for a few moments, then busted up laughing. Ameko offered a hand to Ryuzaki. "I'm sorry. I couldn't resist." She grinned. "Really, though," her voice softened, "I'm pretty tired." Ameko bent down. "Since I've started remembering, I haven't been wanting to sleep." Her grey eyes became deeper. Ryuzaki pulled his fist back and connected with her jaw. Light stopped laughing.

"Ryuzaki!" he shouted. Instantly, Ameko caught herself from falling and had swung her leg around so the top of her foot almost connected with the side of Ryuzaki's face. She stopped an inch away, sighed, and lowered her leg.

"I guess I deserved that one, Ryu." she offered her hand, and this time, he took it. "Geez, you hit hard."

"Sorry." he mumbled as he took his seat.

"So…" Ameko started. Light was watching Ryuzaki, who was staring at his coffee. "Is anyone hungry?"

"No thanks. Are you alright?"

"Just fine. Not like I've never taken a hit before…"

"Ryuzaki, apologize."

"He did!" Ameko said. "Besides, it's not going to change the fact that I was hit, or that it hurt, and it especially doesn't mean anything if the person doesn't mean it, which is why apologies are third in overratedness, only to celebrities and politics." she finished, wondering why she had just defended Ryuzaki.

"Uh…" Light stared at her, unsure of what to say.

"Who said I didn't mean it?"

"Hm? Oh, well I-"

"Coffee?" a waitress asked.

"Oh, yes, please." Ameko said. Ryuzaki sipped his coffee, and sprayed it out, most of it just missing Light's arm.

"What did who put in this?" he asked.

"Sugar." Light pointed at Ameko.

"Traitor." she muttered darkly.

"You mean it's actually too sweet for you?" Light asked. Ryuk laughed.

"No, Light. It's not too sweet, I just wasn't expecting it." Ryuzaki drained the cup. "Shino, is that why you-"

"Insisted you had to go use the bathroom? Pretty much, yeah. Ryuzaki!" Ameko whined suddenly. "Light's sitting on my gummy bears!"

"What? I am not!" He stood and saw, that, in fact, a bag of sweets had made their way under him. "What the-" he held up a bag of jawbreakers.

"Oh. Wrong candy. Never mind. They're safe." Ameko pulled out a bag from her backpack under the table and ate some. Light saw the waitress coming and grabbed three sugar packets while Shino ate her candy and Ryuzaki eyed her suspiciously.

"Clever girl." Ryuk commented. The waitress filled their cups. As Light poured his sugar, Shino and L looked at each other, then at the sugar packet dish. Only eight left. A fight ensued as they both struggled for the remaining condiment. Light watched as Ryuzaki had lowered himself into the corner and had his right foot at Shino's throat. Shino had grabbed the back of his shirt and twisted it, making it harder for him to breathe. Luckily, the border was high enough that no one could see them. Light reached under the table and took the sugar from Ryuzaki.

"That's enough, you two. You aren't children!" Shino straightened herself out as Ryuzaki sat up.

"Light is correct. We should just ask for more when the waitress comes back."

"When is that? Fine, Ryuzaki, go ahead and use your seven packets. I'll go find some more. Light, are you sure you aren't hungry?"

"Well, maybe just a little-"

"Do you like ice cream?"

"Vanilla." Ameko disappeared around the corner.

"She didn't even ask me…" L said.

"Shino probably already knows. So, how long have you two known each other?" Light asked.

"Four months or so. Since before the Kira case." Ryuzaki said, thinking he knew her from somewhere, and his trip to England must have been it.

"How did you meet?"

"We sort of bumped into each other. Very interesting person." Ryuzaki unnecessarily counted seven of eight sugar packets and poured two into his cup at one time. The third packet he tore open, he poured into his spoon before stirring it into his coffee.

"Interesting? What do you mean, Ryuzaki?"

"Well, you see how she acts. You've witnessed her finishing my sentences. But," he leaned forward and whispered, "she has also deduced that I am L." Light's face went blank.

"She…but a singer…how?" he asked, confused. No way was an air headed singer smarter than he; one had to be a genius to be Kira and have L's trust.

"Perhaps that is not her only profession."

"You guessed it. I moonlight as Kira." L and Light turned to see Shino holding a waitress's tray, grinning absurdly.

"You shouldn't joke like that, Shino." Light said.

"Yes. I'd have to kill you." Ryuzaki said sullenly. Shino's face straightened.

"Who said I was joking?" Light looked confused and L stared at her. "Wrong! The correct answer is 'Light'."

"What?" He sat up straight.

"You said I was joking. Chill out." She placed a huge vanilla ice cream sundae in front of him. Shino put a small plate of fries at her place, and lastly, two extra plates and a giant strawberry cake on a platter on the table. Ryuzaki's eyes widened. "Don't forget to empty your pockets before putting your coat in the wash." she announced, before cutting intro the cake.

"Uh, Shino, thank you, but you can't possibly pay for all of this. This is-"

"But I can, my friend." She waved around a red plastic card. "Keira gave it to me for my sugar sprees. Ah, Keira, how I love you!" Shino giggled.

"This…is the best…." Ryuzaki swallowed, "cake I've ever had."

"Isn't that why you picked this place?" Shino asked. A while later, half the cake was gone, and Shino had just started another piece. Suddenly, she put her fork down. Ryuzaki and Light were talking about the Kira case. Shino placed the tip of her left index finger on the corner of her mouth and brought her right knee to her chest. Light noticed how similar the two across from him were: wide, staring gazes, massive sweettooths, peculiar habits, and that mouth tugging. That, specifically, said she was deep in thought.

"Hey, Ryuzaki, maybe Shino's your twin." Light offered.

"What?" he said. "Maybe, Light, but I doubt it."

"Curious…" she muttered.

"Shino?" Ryuzaki asked. She looked over at him attentively and smiled. "What?" he asked.

"Ryu, you look like a panda!"

"Are you feeling well?"

"Yes. Perfectly fine." She grabbed a jar of maraschino cherries from her bag and ate a few. "Oh, so back to this school thing."

"Hm? Oh yes." Ryuzaki started. "Light, Shino has been enrolled and accepted into To-Oh. I figured it best not to enroll you in a choir class. Since you know more than one language, you can easily pass or challenge those courses. You have Psychology and Literature classes with myself, a Math class with Light, and ….an athletics course with the both of us."

"I notice that at no time am I not with one of you two."

"That would be your elective. How does Theatre sound?"

"Wow, Ryuzaki. You sure can guess. Sounds fun. Hey, what happens if I skip math? It's not really my thing."

"I'm in Advanced Geometry." Light said.

"Oh wow." Shino said, as if it were one word.

"What is it?"

"Geometry blows. How about S&P?"

"What's that?"

"Statistics and Probability," Ryuzaki answered, "but why that class?" Shino shrugged.

"In my opinion, it's easier and far more interesting…useful, rather."

"Okay, so you will have a math class with me, as well."

"Fine with me. Doesn't matter." Light looked at his watch.

"Ryuzaki, it's getting late. I'd better go."

"Okay, Light. We should get moving as well."

"It was nice meeting you, Shino."

"No it wasn't." she muttered quietly. Light left the table, the invisible Ryuk following him.

"That girl can see me." he said.

"What?" Light asked without drawing attention to himself. He pulled out his cell phone. "Hello? What? Wait, Sayu, who can see you?" He started his fake phone conversation with his sister. Ryuk laughed.

"Either see me or sense I'm there. Check your pocket." the shinigami said. Light pulled an apple out of his pocket. It had a tag tied to its stem.

To: G.O.D.

"How do you know it's you?"

"The tag. G-O-D. God Of Death. So not only does she see me, but that girl knows I-

"I know you like apples. Okay Sayu, I'll see you in a little while." Light closed his phone.


	4. ONLY Four Inches?

"Light doesn't like me." Shino said simply.

"Why? What makes you think that?"

"I'm not sure. I guess it could just be me." she finished the last of her ultra-sweetened coffee and walked with Ryuzaki to the front door. "Well….see you on Monday, I guess."

"Where are you going?"

"Back to the apartment."

"Actually," Ryuzaki stood up straight, "for some reason I feel I can trust you. Can I?"

"Can you? That would be something for you to decide for yourself. You're smart, you can figure it out." she peered around the corner, almost anxiously.

"Shino- Ameko." She turned. "What do you think about Kira?"

"Kira…." Ameko said thoughtfully. "Kira's work…I don't know. The people who die deserve just that, but isn't there a system in….No. I still don't like him. He's arrogant, just laughing in everyone's face that he's the new God. I'm tired of hearing about it, and him, and if I were the lead detective on his case, I'd take it personally. That's an insult, a slap in the face is what it is. New God, my ass. Kira should be killed." Ameko thought for a moment. "Yeah." she shrugged.

"I see. Would you….would you like to join me?"

"What?" Ryuzaki moved in closer.

"I am L. Would you like to join the investigation?"

"Look, Ryuzaki, I betrayed my best friend. No, my only friend, and quite possibly the only real friend I will _ever_ have had. You've got Watari, that pretty boy, the foreign FBI, and the entirety of Japan's police force. You don't need me." Ameko gazed sadly at the detective who made her think of her only real friend.

"What did you do to betray them?" Ryuzaki asked, thumb pushing at his upper lip.

"I never wrote." she said, looking away. "Ill give you an entire week to reconsider. Offer up a list of six reasons; good, valid reasons, that you need me, and I'll stay. Personally, I don't even have _one_. And, uh…sorry for calling you a panda."

"It's quite alright. I once had some one else call me a panda, though I failed to see it." A horn honked. Watari could be seen from the window of a car. "Will you be staying at the apartment?"

"Hm? Yeah."

"You're welcome to stay with us. From now on, Watari and I will be moving from hotel to hotel every few days."

"How about this? If I join you in one week, then I will. If not, I'll be in the apartment. Call if you need anything; I'll be up every night."

"Would you like Watari to drop you off?" Ryuzaki offered.

"Sure, why not?" Ameko and Ryuzaki walked up to the car. "Hey, Watari."

"Seatbelts." he reminded them. They both groaned. "You two…" he sighed. "Ryuzaki, will Ameko be staying with us?"

"Back at the apartment. She will join us in one week."

"Confident, aren't we?"

"Hmmm….yes, but I'm not often wrong." From his crouched position he was in, he looked about seventeen. But when he lowered his leg and straightened out, he became twenty-two. Ameko stared at him. He turned. "What?"

"Uh, Ryu, how old are you?"

"I'm sorry, but I can't give you that information."

"Oh. Oh, yeah, the whole secret identity thing…"

"Yes." Five minutes later, they pulled into the back parking lot.

"Do you need to see where I live?"

"What? If you give me the number, I can find the room on the blueprints." Ryuzaki replied, looking out the window.

"People make you nervous, too, huh?" He turned around.

"Who said I was nervous?"

"You did. When you saw all of those people hanging around the mail building, your leg was pulled up in a more defensive position. I used to do it too, though. Number six, through that way." Ameko got out of the car. "Until Monday, Ryu, and whenever, Watari." She closed the door and started off toward her apartment. Ryuzaki frowned and sighed.

"What is it?" Watari looked at him in the rearview mirror.

"She forgot her backpack. " He glanced out of the window.

"Would you like me to take it to her?" Watari offered.

"I could do it…" he trailed off. A large group of teens got off of a bus. "Yes, if you could, Watari." The old mad got out of the car, retrieved the bag, and started after Ameko. In the relatively short time she had been out of the car, she rounded a corner, crossed a circular courtyard, and climbed twenty-three steps. Watari knocked on the door.

"Yes? The music isn't even on!" she yelled from inside. He opened the door. "Oh, Watari…"

"You left this in the car." He held her backpack up. She was sitting crouched like L on the back of a couch, file opened on the seat cushion. Ameko looked up.

"My…oh." she looked back down and lowered one leg to turn a page. "Uhm…" Ameko started. "Do you….remember me? I mean…from…"

"From what?" Watari smiled politely. She glanced at a picture in the file, picked it up, and got off the couch.

"The orphanage…" Ameko handed the picture to Watari and took her backpack.

"I don't forget any one." he replied. Watari looked at the picture. A younger Ryuzaki, on his twelfth birthday, had a cupcake smashed on to the side of his face. A dark haired pale girl, around eight, was laughing in the background. Ryuzaki was smiling. "You are Shadow, the girl with no name. I was sad to see you go. You were Ryuzaki's only friend. Do you still remember his name?" he asked. Ameko smiled ,because she did, because she hadn't forgotten anyone's name from that time. She looked down at the picture.

"Lawliet." she whispered. "And Quillish Wammy."

"You do remember. It's been…ten years? since the Hajiyorus took you in."

"Don't even mention them. The teacher they hired didn't know anything. If I ever showed disinterest in a lecture or corrected her, she'd slap me and toss me in this dark room. Not regular dark, but nothingness dark. I liked it better with no name, no family, and one friend. Ryuzaki's waiting. Oh," Ameko started, as Watari turned to leave, "I know he's looking for information on me. Don't tell him, please. I will, if he doesn't figure it out in two weeks."

"Of course." He smiled through his thick moustache. Watari left and headed back to the car where Ryuzaki was waiting, leaving Ameko to remember her past.

Four o'clock a.m., Ameko woke up. She sat in bed, grabbed her dark green notebook laptop, and surfed the net. Seven came, and she walked about until she came across a coffee shop.

"Well , it's about time." After she purchased a large coffee, extra cream and sugar with a spike of brandy, Ameko sat on the back of a bench, feet on the seat. She regretted not being able to write to Ryuzaki, and especially having to live so far away from him. Of course, on the old maps in the Wammy's House's old library, Italy and England _weren't_ so far away. That was how things were measured. One inch was two hundred miles. Worchester was what….four inches from Venice? No big deal. But it was. Eight hundred and nine miles was a faraway thought, no longer close enough to play tag, or Connect Four, or cardless poker, or talk about bad dreams and sneak to the great expanse that was the walk-in pantry to eat sugar food. Much too far. Ryuzaki became unsociable. "Betrayal causes distrust…and no friend could stand…never mind." She realized that she'd been talking out loud. Ameko thought of things she could do until Monday. She could think of nothing. School would be her life for at least a week, until Ryuzaki could (maybe) come up with a list. If he couldn't, would she still join? She was sure he would, but would Ameko join up and re-make friends just because she had nothing better to do?

No.

"Too much pride for that." she thought out loud. She made a trip to the grocery store and spent the day inside. Sunday, she made the trip to the same coffee shop (she had no coffee pot), and then to the bank. Earlier that morning, she found she only had four regular outfits. The rest were costumes for shows. She bought about six more outfits, but figured that would give her ten. Ameko bought one more on her way home, not liking the number ten. She checked out To-Oh on line and gotten her class schedule. Ryuzaki had enrolled her under the name Ameko Inazuma, luckily.

* * *

**Thanks to invisible-gurl and Katt Satou for the reviews. THIS CHAPTER IS LATE. (duh) Anyway, I hope to have ch.5 up in sooner than almost a month. I ask only for three reviews.**

**-S**


	5. Who Knew Cake Was Good For The Skin?

**So much for "sooner than almost a month". Oh well.**

* * *

As she studied her schedule, Ameko's cell phone went off.

"Yo?" Ameko greeted, then remembering who was probably calling, "Erm, hello?"

"Ameko," Ryuzaki started, "what are you doing right now?"

"Uh, I just got done looking at my class schedule. My transcript's impressive, too. How'd you come up with it?"

"I had Watari pull some strings."

"You're not going to tell me, are you?"

"Preferably not. Can you meet me somewhere in twenty minutes?"

"Uh, sure. Why?"

"To be honest," Ryuzaki lowered his voice, "I'm bored and tired and I need a break." Ameko barely stifled a laugh.

"Alright. Where?"

"Where would you prefer?"

"Well, you could come here." Ameko offered. "I've got a cake about ready to come out of the oven." Silence met her offer.

"What kind?" Ryuzaki finally asked.

"Strawberry."

"You win. In twenty minutes, I will be there." Ameko hung up before him, a half-justified smugness creeping over her.

-x--X--x--X--x--X--x--X--x--X--x--X--x--X--x--X--x--X--x--X--x--X--x--X--x--X--x--X-

"She…She hung up on me." Ryuzaki stated blankly to Watari. The old man laughed.

"I believe, Ryuzaki, that it is payback for your first meeting. As I recall, you hung up on her."

"Yeah, but I hardly think-"

"An eye for an eye." Watari reminded him. "So, where will I be taking you?" he asked.

"To her apartment. She's cooking, so she can't leave right now." Ryuzaki paused. "Watari, is it a smart thing, trusting something like this?" The old man smiled, chuckling lightly.

"Ryuzaki, you are the only one who can answer that for yourself. There is always some danger involved in trusting someone you've just met, but there's also a hazard with those you've known for years. It depends upon the people."

"Of course. That's a really good answer if you don't want to give me one." His voice was almost pouting. Ryuzaki spun around to face his friend and father figure. He sat with his left knee in the air, arm resting on his knee. His right arm was draped across the armrest. "Have you found any more on Inazuma?"

"No, I'm afraid the trail begins at eleven years old. There's no other paperwork at any orphanage or hospital in Italy, England, or Japan."

"So I know you won't tell me about trust, but what do you think about her joining the investigation?" he changed the subject again. Watari sighed, exasperated.

"Ryuzaki, my opinion is that, despite what I say, you will make friends and invite Ameko Inazuma to join you. You will be irrefutably drawn to her, like light to a shadow." he paused. "It is just a matter of when." Ryuzaki watched Watari for a moment, and gave a very small smile.

"Thank you. Should we head out?" Watari and Ryuzaki headed to Ameko's living space.

-x--X--x--X--x--X--x--X--x--X--x--X--x--X--x--X--x--X--x--X--x--X--x--X--x--X--x--X-

It was a standard three room apartment. From the front door, to the left was the living room, furnished with two couches and a lamp. Behind the wall to the right of the front door was the room Ameko inhabited. Down the hall from the front door, and across from her door was the master bedroom. At the end of the hall the bathroom sat, and on the other side of the hall to the left of the bathroom was the second bedroom. There was an open kitchen, one wall separating the kitchen from the living room. Between the left end of the kitchen and the sliding glass door was a 'dining room' that had never owned a table.

Ryuzaki almost knocked on the door, but saw a note taped up for him.

'Come in, and take this note with you.'

He took the note down and opened the door.

"Hello?" he asked cautiously. "Ameko?" Ryuzaki walked deeper into the apartment. On the nearest sofa, a file sat on top of a laptop. Ameko walked from her room with a pair of chunky headphones from the seventies on her head to the kitchen. Ryuzaki followed. She had three small glass bottles, each of which had some of its contents poured into a bowl of frosting. Ameko looked up at the cabinet, then straight at Ryuzaki.

"Oh, Ryuzaki…." she took off the headphones, "I didn't hear you….uh, how are you?"

"Tired. This is the toughest case I've ever had."

"I see. When I lived in Italy, I did _some_ detective work, but I don't think it compares to the Kira case. Oh, uh, sit….anywhere. I have counter space." she offered. Ryuzaki hopped up onto the counter across from the sink. "So what's up?"

"Hm? What do you mean?" Ameko smiled and shook her head, hopping up on the sink ledge.

"You don't seem to be the kind of person to take a break just because you're tired. Whaddya need?"

"I'm sure I don't know what you mean."

"Look, in Italy, there are plenty of _deka_ hanging around. None of them take a break in the middle of a case, especially the big ones. Yoe trying to figure my past out?" Ryuzaki considered his options for a moment.

"Yes." he answered. Ameko slid off the counter and turned back to the frosting.

"Then ask." Ryuzaki, not having much experience in situations where people cooperate with investigations, hesitated.

"Who were your birth parents?"

"Dunno. Grew up in an orphanage, from about…five."

"Where was the orphanage located?"

"Somewhere in England, I think."

"What was it called?"

"No one ever told me."

"When were you adopted?"

"Eleven, by Kisuke Hajiyoru, and his pain in the ass diva of a wife Bella Rinaldi-Hajiyoru."

"Why did you leave?"

"Didn't like them." Ameko pulled out a knife to cover the cake with icing.

"How did you come to Japan?"

"The advice of an Italian merchant, to find an old friend."

"Who?"

"You already asked a 'who' question."

"You never said there was a limit." Ryuzaki protested.

"You never said how you knew I know more than one language." Ameko replied.

"In your sleep….you were speaking about seeing nightmares in Italian." Ameko turned around.

"I said I was 'seeing' nightmares? Curious. Most would have interpreted it as 'having' nightmares. Why didn't you?" Ryuzaki pulled his right knee up, but dropped it down for lack of room.

"My friend said they saw nightmares that prevented them from sleeping by watching." His eyes were wide and unfocused. They sharpened with a sudden move to Ameko's face. She turned around, continuing to spread the icing around. A bell rang in the living room. Ryuzaki got up to check it out.

"Ame…" a muffled voice shouted. He opened the notebook and was faced with a green eyed blue haired girl. "Where's Ameko? Who are you?"

"Oh, I'm…a friend. He quickly carried the laptop to the kitchen.

"Keira!" Ameko greeted the screen.

"Hey! Oh, you have no clue how glad I am to see you! When I heard from you the other day, I wasn't sure it was really you….." Ryuzaki drifted back to the living room. A file that had been on the top of the notebook had fallen open on the floor. He glanced down at the papers, thumb pushing at his upper lip. The picture of him and his only friend at his twelfth birthday lay on the ground at his feet. He panicked for a moment, wondering how this bizarre "detective" had gotten hold of his picture. Ryuzaki picked everything up and put it on the couch quickly.

"….creepy guy?"

"He's not creepy." Ameko protested.

"If you say so. To-Oh, really?"

"You sound shocked. I may be quiet, but not talking does give me more time to think."

"Okay, well, Kori's back, and I 'm tired. I'll definitely talk to you later." Keira's face left the screen. Ryuzaki sat back on the counter and began to hum as Ameko picked up the knife to get the last of the icing on the cake. She heard the awkwardly hummed song.

"Tonight the stars will scream……" she sang softly, "so cast your smiles to the side, and show them all your growing pride…." Ameko put the knife down and pulled two plates from the cabinet. She cut the cake and turned around. "You still need years six through eleven?" She handed Ryuzaki a plate.

"Shadow?" he asked quietly. She inclined her head to the left.

"Lawliet." she whispered. "Been a while, huh?" Ryuzaki just stared at her. She handed him a spoon.

"C'mon. We've got all day to talk, if you want." Ameko started into the living room. Ryuzaki followed, and sat facing the other arm of the couch, where Ameko was perched.

"Watari never told me who adopted you."

"He…He didn't?" Ameko looked at him. "I asked Watari…..so you could write if they didn't let me." She closed her eyes as a rage passed over her. Suddenly, relaxing, she whispered "Curious…"

"When you tilt your head like that, the circles around your eyes make you look like a raccoon." Ryuzaki offered. Ameko smiled.

"Panda man!" she laughed. Ryuzaki chuckled lightly, for the first time in ten years. "Now, Ryu, when was the last time you laughed? You sound at unease." Ameko looked at him cheerfully.

"Oh, I'd say about ten years." he answered honestly. "But, Shay, when did you last look so happy? Your eyes seem haunted." Shay was short for Shade, being short for Shadow. She looked down, then smiled softly.

"I guess that makes me a haunted raccoon." Ameko cleared her throat and looked him in the eyes. "It's been a while since you've called me that. What? Since you learned about the adoption?" He nodded. "I really did mean for Watari to give you the address… How mad were you?"

"Not as angry as you would think. Upset that I had no information, tracking someone who's untraceable, and a bit disappointed that no one ever told me why. And, of course, you never wrote to me." He took a bite of cake. "Y'know, I never once suspected you betrayed me. Ever." Ameko put her plate down in front of her feet. She got up and walked to Ryuzaki, giving him a hug.

"I missed you, more than a sparrow misses the sky." With his free right arm, he half hugged her back.

"Your hair smells like pineapple." he commented.

"That's nice."

"You're cutting circulation to my arm off."

"So?"

"So…." Ryuzaki got a forkful of cake, "This!" he said, pushing it against her face. Ameko laughed, and let go.

"Oh, which reminds me, did you remember on your own, or did the picture fall out?"

"I had my suspicions, but the picture did it."

"So you hummed that song we made up? You couldn't think of anything else?"

"Well, you _did_ come up with it. And I like hearing you sing." Ameko pulled the cake off of her face, and squished it to Ryuzaki's forehead.

"Have cake." He looked up at it, then at her. She laughed.

* * *

**Thank you to invisible-gurl, Katt Satou, and Pretty Much A Big Deal for your reviews! And this time I mean it when I say sooner than almost a month. Well, I'll have to try harder. Till chapter 5!**


	6. Didn't Want To Lose Two

**Well, apparently I lied when I said sooner than a month. It's been over a month….heheh…Oh well. Here it is.**

* * *

"It's late afternoon. What should we do?" Ameko stood facing Ryuzaki, who shifted into a proper sitting position on the couch.

"Hmm… I came here to learn about your past, so, why don't you tell me about the family you lived with?" She sighed.

"Once upon a time, there was a raccoon who lived in an ostentatious mansion with three princesses, an overbearing evil queen, and a beaten puppy of a king. The queen wanted the raccoon to dance, play music, sit correctly, eat properly, and learn French so she could make the raccoon wed a French nobleman's son, pompous-assed Prince Look-at-me."

"I hardly think that's a French name." Ryuzaki cut in.

"Shut up. It's _my_ story, not yours. Go write your own bestseller." Ameko grumbled. "He didn't want any of the other princesses, cuz they were a quart short of a gallon. The queen sent the raccoon to a room with an evil instructor that, when the raccoon didn't pay attention because she already knew it, would throw the raccoon into a room of dark, empty, nothingness. The raccoon would sit in the Black for up to three hours at a time. Stupid teacher was a fail; too short-tempered. Life was definitely better at the other house for the raccoon, where she lived with her best, and only, friend the panda. She begun to sneak out to play with the children of the poorer merchants on the other side of town, where she eventually opened a detective agency. The raccoon would often get in, uh, trouble with the, uh, polizia, but they forgave her when the raccoon solved cases within the week." Ameko looked around the room and sat on the couch.

"Ngnnyah…..One day, an "old merchant", while pretending to be Venetian, told her that there was a great detective in England that went by one letter. The raccoon's keeper, the queen, told the raccoon that she could not go to England, but would travel to France and see Prince Look-at-me when she was fifteen, The raccoon charged polizia money for her help, and took off to Japan to start singing. She took a trip to Aoyama, and the plane crashed on the way back home. Six months afterwards, the panda found her and the panda and raccoon were bestest friends again. …..Finito." she ended.

"Wow." Ryuzaki said factually. "A fail?" he asked. "When did you start using English slang again?"

"On and off. I _did_ drop by England. You weren't at the house….Like you'd still be there at twenty-two. Charming successors, though."

"Who did you see?" he asked, sounding worried.

"Near, Matt, and…Mello. _He's_ real pleasant."

"Mello? What did he do?"

"Called Near a tosser, then threw his plane into the river. That was just my first day."

"First day?"

"I stayed the week. I flew back to Japan when no one heard of you. The polizia, er, police, said you hadn't come around in a month."

"Watari accompanied me to locate a German detective that began killing his suspects."

"I see. So, how was _your_ life after I left the brain farm?"

"Oh," Ryuzaki looked up at the ceiling, "uneventful. The others called me rude names, and not even Watari's presence silenced them completely. Otherwise, my sugar consumption increased while the hours of sleep decreased."

"Sugar's nice. Sleep? Eh…I could find better things to do."

"You slept fine with me." Ryuzaki said.

"I know. The nightmares wouldn't come near you. Except one, but it wasn't scary." Ameko used to get up at night when she couldn't sleep and go to Ryuzaki's room. The bed was big enough that neither of them would fall out if they rolled over.

"You talk about them as if they were people…" Ryuzaki mused. Ameko shrugged.

"Are you ever tired? Like, of doing what you do."

"Sometimes. But it's for good, and bringing justice to those who won't otherwise get it helps me keep up."

"Helps you keep up, or pushes you along?" He looked back to the ceiling, then to Ameko.

"Aren't they the same now?" a ghost of a smile playing on his lips.

"The two _have_ become the same. Just don't get yourself killed." Ameko looked at the clock. "That didn't take nearly as much time as I thought it would."

"Don't worry. That's not the first thing on my list." He put his spoon in his mouth. "Can I add 'previously acquainted' to the Six Reason list?"

"No, but 'work well together' is a viable option. Oh, and I know not to let Light to know we grew up as friends. Hey, what is everyone gonna call me?"

"You're registered at the school as Ameko Inazuma. Light knows you both as Shino Yanagi and Ameko Inazuma, so in public and at school, we will refer to you as Ameko. What name will you be called by the Task Force?"

"Still certain of yourself?"

"I have a list." Ryuzaki said defensively.

"Did I mention six **viable** reasons, no more than six?" He opened his mouth to speak, but closed it. "Well, good luck with that. I guess the Task Force can call me Ameko. But when it's just us, call me Shadow, if you like. I miss my cake…" She stood, plate in hand, and held her other hand out for Ryuzaki's plate. A ringing in the master bedroom echoed into the living room. "K'so…… Just a moment." She made her way into the room and opened the white laptop in the center of the floor. Silence filled the living room, then someone's voice chattered quietly.

"Ah, no, no," Ameko's voice drifted out, "non e mai venutto….Si…Si. Prego. Tante Cose." She walked into the kitchen and got more cake.

"So who was that?" Ryuzaki asked. She handed him his plate.

"Oh," she started, mouth full of cake, "the polizia. I didn't even remember I had a case." Ameko swallowed. "I don't even remember what name I'm using. It would be rude to ask…." she mused.

"Watari would be appalled by your manners." Ryuzaki stated, shoving a big piece of cake in his mouth.

"Just mine? Really?" Ameko stared at him accusingly. He almost apologized.

"Wait! I am L! I do not need such things as manners!" he outcried.

"Yeah…well….I am _awesome_, so….uh, yeah. I got nothing'." Ameko laughed, then sighed.

"What is it, Shay?"

"Nothing." she smiled. Ryuzaki gave her a look that said 'Tell-me-or-I'll-beat-it-out-of-you. Or-suspect-you-of-being-Kira." "Well, I….You're gonna be at To-Oh tomorrow. You're gonna be at the hotel tonight. You'll be there, where _you_ are. Tonight, where I am, you won't be at the hotel. You'll be gone. Tomorrow, in Theatre, you'll be gone, not on campus in another room. It's no big deal."

"No big deal?"

"No. I mean, it seems big _now_, but before a few days ago, I had just kind of resigned myself to the fact I'd probably never see you. In a few days, though, it'll be fine." Ameko waved her hand around. Ryuzaki thought for a moment, thumb in his mouth.

"I could stay here tonight." he offered.

"You'd…..No. It's okay, really. I just miss my Days of Misfortune."

"Your what?"

"You remember that nurse at Wammy's? She'd always make the kids feel bad. 'You ratty little orphans! Misfortune favored you, hm? And _you_, you're the most unfortunate. The Lady of Misfortune favored you the most! No family, no name…! Just as well you only get along with that black-haired loony.' I wonder why she was even kept…" Ryuzaki laughed at Ameko's imitation. "Wammy's was better than anywhere."

"You never told her your name was Shadow?"

"No. As much as I like it, it's not my real name. It's what everyone started calling me. And it's easier to disappear without a name."

"Fair enough." Ryuzaki said. He and Ameko talked for a few more hours before he left with Watari. Ameko climbed onto the roof to watch them drive off. It was great to have her friend back, and to have a date she would next see him. Even if Light had to be there.

"Man, he's annoying. I would convict him first, because….well….he's bothersome." She stared at the clouds miles off, wishing for rain. In England, she would go outside during storms and play by the trees. There was a kind-of-maze made from randomly planted shrubs. In the middle was a willow tree surrounded by grass and mushrooms. Ameko liked to imagine faeries lived there and that they would play with her someday. There was a wooden slab that quite resembled a tombstone. She carved onto it:

'In the Light you should Stay;

Here is where the Shadows play.'

At five, she was removed from her "aunt's" house, where she lived in a small room with four other kids. They put her in an orphanage and bombarded the five of them with tests to determine how much the city would have to spend to catch them up on what they needed to know. Ameko passed them, and other tests. An old man took her to another orphanage, handing her off to another old man, who addressed himself as Watari.

"You're a very bright girl, you know." she looked at her arms.

"I guess, but I don't like the sun." He chuckled.

"Well, what's your name?"

"I don't know. That woman called me Brat, but that doesn't sound like a very good name."

"I see. Well, you can have any name you want." Watari told her. She thought for a moment.

"What about no name?"

"If that's what you want." So they agreed she had no real name to speak of. Later, it was discovered her mother had died in childbirth at a local hospital and the baby had been given up for adoption several times and disappeared. '_Oh well.'_ she thought. _'It's been better that way, and now I know L.'_

* * *

"Watari, why didn't you tell me it was Shadow?"

"She asked me to let you remember."

"Oh. Why didn't you give me her address in Italy?"

"I was afraid you would go to Italy."

"Oh."

**It's come to my attention I've used the word '_deka'_ several times._ 'Deka'_ is the Japanese derogatory term for 'detective'.  
Also, Ameko's laptop conversation in english is a follows:**

**"Ah, no, no," Ameko's voice drifted out, "He never came...Yes...Yes. You're welcome. All the best."**

**THANKS invisible-gurl AND Katt Satou FOR REVIEWING!! Love you guys!!**


	7. Walking Disaster

Watari had just dropped his 'children' off at the college. Ameko met them in the front of the apartment complex with tea and some odd sort of danish. Before they left the parking lot, he reminded them to put their seat belts on, knowing full well they would take them off later. Both Ryuzaki and Ameko groaned, just like they did after he told them to put the devices on when he took them to the zoo or museum, or crime scenes when they were older. It made him laugh a little to know, ten years later, the no-name girl and her only friend; the genius boy and his only friend, were more or less the same people. Undoubtedly smarter, older, and a little more alone. Hopefully, they would feel better with their friend back.

Watari considered calling Roger to tell him about the rediscovery of Ameko, but he doubted Roger would be pleased as he was. For one, Roger didn't have as close of a connection with the children, so he wouldn't know what this would mean. Not to say his old friend was cold or disconnected. On the contrary, he was quite warm and kind, but he didn't think of the orphans as his children. No doubt he would surely be pleased to hear a former ward was doing well, but she wouldn't be his child. Watari pulled into the parking lot of their area of their current hotel. In a few months, their headquarters would be completed, and there would be a locked section to park in, and he wouldn't have to wipe everything down before he went back to the room. After he finished cleaning the black brandless car he drove, Watari headed back to the fifth floor, of which they had rented the entire floor, to work/sleep. He was old, after all. Before the nap, the room filled with the tune of "Walking Disaster" by Sum 41.

"…I pledge allegiance to the world of disbelief where I belo-" He flipped the phone open. "Watari."

"Ryuu said he was gonna restrict my sugar intake!" Watari was caught between scolding Ameko and laughing.

"What is it that you want me to do?" he asked.

"I dunno….ground him or something?"

"Ameko, Ryuzaki is a grown man-"

"So why's he act like a kid?"

"Why do you?" Silence. Watari chuckled. "Look, Ameko, tell him I'll deal with him after your return. As for you-"

"The phone is for emergencies or if we need to contact you, not for personal business," she quoted him, "I know. But….I threatened to tell, and uh…well….he dared me to…so…I did. Rather lacking in foresight, I know….but…yeah."

"I'm glad you understand. School will be starting soon, and you and Ryuzaki have work to do."

"Fine. Later." She hung up, but hadn't cut him off. Watari laid on the couch to nap.

xmnxmnxmn+--EARLIER--+xmnxmnxmn

Ameko waved her arm as Watari drove off. Ryuzaki stood further up the walk, staring as if she were stark raving mad. She turned.

"What? Like you've never seen someone wave goodbye before." she huffed.

"Yes," he said in a particularly sultry tone of voice, "but not usually so frantically."

"Oh whatever." Ameko caught up to him and pulled out two large coffee cups from her backpack. He took a drink and spat it out. "What?"

"What did you put in this?!" Ryuzaki shoved the cup in her face. Ameko sniffed it.

"Oh. Sorry. Try this one." she switched him cups. Ryuzaki cautiously sipped the steaming liquid. He decided it was safe and continued drinking.

"So what did you put in that cup to make it taste so horrible?"

"Brandy." she shrugged.

"Brandy? Since when do you drink alcohol?"

"Mmmmm……Nyaaah I'd say about eleven years. Well, unless you mean regularly. That would be…seven?" Ryuzaki stopped her.

"You mean to tell me you've been drinking since the age of fourteen?"

"Well, I _meant _to tell you I've been drinking alcohol regularly for seven years. The age I started drinking at being fourteen would be your _own_ conclusion." she walked on. Ryuzaki shook his head. _'Better not to interfere.' _he thought.

"You won't show up inebriated, will you?" Ameko turned.

"What do look like? Retarded?" she snorted. "I thought you had better brains than to think that."

"Well, I suppose I should ask a meth addict to watch my child, because it speaks to _my_ common sense that you do not use drugs around children." Ryuzaki said, challenging her with a glance. Ameko's first thought was that he compared her to a meth addict, but then she picked up on what he hadn't wanted to be picked up.

"Oh, Ryu! You have a child? How cute! How old is it? Male or female? I bet it looks just like you!" Ameko gushed over the imaginary child like a prep over shoes. Ryuzaki smacked his face with his free hand.

"No, I don't have offspring. That's not the point."

"So how many meth addicts do you know?" He drew in a breath. "Look, I get it. I know you've got your big lecture all planned out and whatnot, but you know me. At least, you used to. I value brain function, and not looking like a moron. Did you know a lot of the drunks who're arrested shit themselves in the police cars?" Ameko asked.

"You guarantee you will not show up drunk?"

"It takes an awful lot to get drunk. More than I plan on consuming." She crossed her arms. "Soooo…….how many meth addicts _do_ you know?" Ryuzaki looked at her unamused. Ameko elbowed him. "Come on. I won't tell any one…"

"If you don't stop it with the bothering, I'm going to cut your access to sugar."

"What? You can't do that!" she protested vehemently.

"I most certainly can, and I will if you keep swinging that cup around and spill coffee on me."

"Yeah, well….I'm gonna call Watari!"

"Go ahead." He sipped his coffee leisurely.

"R-really?"

"I'll even go so far as to dare you, Ameko." She pulled her phone out and dialed.

"Ryuu said he's gonna restrict my sugar intake!" she complained enthusiastically. Ryuzaki raised an eyebrow. "So why's he act like a kid?"

"I do not. You do it too." Ryuzaki stopped, realizing he just confirmed her accusation.

"The phone is for emergencies or if we need to contact you, not for personal business, I know. But….I threatened to tell, and uh…well….he dared me to…so…I did. Rather lacking in foresight, I know….but…yeah." Ameko sighed. Ryuzaki stuck out his tongue. "Fine. Later." Ameko hung up and grinned. "He said he'd deal with you when you get back."

"Well, it was _your_ childish antics that started it." he sipped his coffee.

"Yeah? You're the one that _dared_ me to do it. Third grade much?" They took a seat on one of the benches. Ameko sat on the back, feet on the seat, and Ryuzaki sat next to her scrunched up on the seat. Light showed up a little bit later. Watari had been off by a half an hour on the start time of their classes. Either that, or he dropped them off early on purpose.

"Hey, guys. How are you this morning?" he asked.

"Tired." Ryuzaki replied.

"Caffeinated." Ameko drank from a can of soda.

"That's, what, three sodas already?" the detective asked her.

"Yeah? So? You're just mad cuz I didn't go get you another coffee." Ameko took another drink of her soda.

"Are you two sure you don't know each other? You act like old friends." Light asked.

"Miss Inazuma insists on 'hanging out'. We know each other from four and a half months ago, working on a different case." Ryuzaki said boredly.

"Whatever. Hanging out is fun, and you know it. Oh, did…..oh, wait……."

"What?" Light asked.

"I forgot." Ameko grinned. The bell rang, and the three dispersed to their classes.

* * *

**Thanks to Katt Satou, invisible-gurl, BloodAndIvory, and accountless reviewer for your reviews!**

**BloodAndIvory: I think I've watched some Fruits Basket before, but I don't remember. I read up on it, and that part is similar...the one with Kyo...**

**accountless reviewer: It's kind of an odd request, but I'd be...honoured? Oh well. Go ahead and use her name! X)**


	8. Tennis and Time Lapses

Ryuzaki and Light were playing tennis. Ameko stood on a bench to watch them. Since the two had started, a rather sizeable crowd had gathered around the courts, and she had been rudely shoved outside the chain link fence and away from it. Some kid by the door was going on about how Light had been the Junior High champion. _Oh big deal. L's _waaay_ better than him, anyway._

"Hey, hey, what about my Ryuuga? Don't tell me you haven't noticed him holding his own against this former junior high champ!" A black haired girl in a windbreaker spoke excitedly. Excuse_ me?! _Your_ Ryuuga? Who knew him first? Who knows his real name? _She subconsciously rose her hand. _That's right; me!_

"Game and set! Won by Light Yagami!"

"Oh, come on, Ryuu!! What was that?!" Ameko yelled. "What happened to all that tennis skill you were talkin' about?!" The girl by the stairs turned and glared at her, but this gesture went unnoticed. Ryuzaki turned around and held his fingers up, thumb and forefinger about an inch apart. "You take that back! I'm not _that_ short! Augh, you--!" Ameko jumped down and pushed her way through the crowd. Light and L were gathering their packs and rackets.

"Must you be so short-tempered?" Ryuzaki asked her.

"Must you be so long-winded?" She asked him. "Besides, with all that caffeine, are you really _surprised_?" He sighed.

"No. No I'm not." Light joined them.

"Good game." Ameko commented. "I mean, you could have not drawn such a crowd. That would have made it better."

"What?" Light asked. L shook his head.

"I was standing right over there. Then, everyone was all like, "Oh, this is awesome!" and then they pushed me outside. Then, I was pushed back and had to stand on a frickin' bench most of the time. Butcha played well."

"Oh, uh, thanks…" Light said. He began to leave. Ameko walked beside L and slipped a few pictures into the back pocket of his jeans.

"Watari." she said when he looked at her. "Hey, I'm gonna play with my mp3 players in the library. Meet me when you're done, or you won't get any of what I'll have." Ameko snatched a messenger bag from outside the tennis courts and skipped off toward the library.

"Hey, I'm really thirsty. Do you wanna go somewhere for a drink?" Light asked the detective.

"Well, you humoured me by playing tennis, so the least I could do would be to answer some of your questions…" Ryuzaki replied.

Ameko sat in the back corner of the library. It was a vast expanse of wasted space. Normally, she would revere such a place, but these books were uninformative and repetitive. There was nothing she could get from these books she could not get from her own head, or the internet. _The orphanage's library is better stocked._ she thought. _Okay, so they were raising geniuses, but still. College is supposed to nurture minds, not feed them the same crap they've been eating since high school._ Ameko pulled out her dark green notebook laptop and opened it. _It's no wonder no one ever comes in here._ Two male students came around the corner participating in not-so-library-appropriate activities.

"Occupied!" she shouted irritatedly. They quickly pulled apart and handed away, embarrassed. _Okay, scratch that. _Almost_ no one comes in here._ She began tracking Ryuzaki via a chip she had slipped into his pocket with the pictures. When he and Light found the café, she hacked the security cameras and sat back to watch the show.

Ryuzaki neared the library. He stopped in front of the doors and inspected his hands to make sure they were clean. Then he ran one hand through his hair, making it even messier, if at all possible. After a few minutes of walking around, L found Ameko in the back of the library, near the window, but out of sight of it. She had her computer out and was typing intermittently.

"I thought you'd be over here." he said.

"And so I am." Without looking away from her screen, Ameko produced a plate. "Sugar, anyone?" she asked. There was a small cake covered in chocolate icing, topped with strawberries, and dusted with powdered sugar. She handed the plate and a fork to him.

"Is that…"

"Yes. Oh, what was with that uh, hair thing? Y'know, just before you came in." Ameko glanced up.

"You were watching me?" L asked through a mouthful of cake.

"Well, that depends. Are you going to be mad?"

"No. I might actually be impressed."

"No. I was tracking you. I planted a chip with those pictures and hacked the cameras in the café you went to. I heard your entire conversation." She closed out a few windows.

"Any thoughts?" he asked.

"The same as yours." Ameko replied.

"And what exactly are my thoughts?" Ameko deftly rose one eyebrow.

"He's the one. I'm sure of it in ways you couldn't be." She closed her laptop and stuffed it in her bag. "See you tomorrow. I've got some things to do." Just before she walked out of the aisle, Ameko turned. "I'll be expecting your list tomorrow. Friday, you know." She left the library.

"I wonder what she meant by "in ways you couldn't be"….." He called Watari to pick him up and finished his cake while waiting.

Ameko sat curled on her bed like L, blanket pulled tightly around her shoulders. The notebook sat closed on the end of her bed, a covered mirror on the wall across from her. _Why don't I just take that thing down? It's not like I like mirrors, anyway._ She would see monsters when she was young. Hideous beings that followed people around or idly sit unnoticed in trees. At first, she would catch glimpses of them in mirrors. The first time one materialized before her not in a mirror, she was known as Shadow, and it was two months after her sixth birthday. Shadow took off down the west wing's first floor hallway, the red-eyed monster flying behind her on black feathers bunched together to form wings that shouldn't have worked. Shadow ran through Wammy's house, never able to make anything louder than a whimper. The monster followed the dark-haired child to the third floor hall of the East wing. There was a black door with fifteen small panes of green glass that opened on to a balcony. No one was staying in the three other rooms, and Shadow wasn't taking a chance on the possibly locked attic. The monster was gliding closer, a sickly chuckle escaping from between its jutting teeth. The balcony handle was stuck, so Shadow began to pound on it. A door in the hall opened, a nine year old boy peering out.

"What are you doing?" he asked. The monster stopped, looked to the boy, and grumbled. "It's the middle of January. I doubt you'll be wanting out there." He opened his door more and stepped out. The monster disappeared. "What's wrong? You look scared."

"Th-th-the m-monster…" she stuttered.

"Monsters don't exist." the boy said. He walked closer and grabbed at her hand. "Does this hurt?" he asked, pressing on her right hand. She yelped. He dragged her over to his room. "You've broken your fifth metacarpal and proximal phalanx. There might even be some damage to your metacarpophalangeal joint." he told her. "Which are you? I'm L."

"I…I don't….have one."

"You're the one they call Shadow, then?" L asked.

"Yeah."

"Hm. From your limping, you appear to have pulled your left anterior tibial muscle. Let's go have Watari look at it."

"Um, but what if the monsters come back?" she hesitated down the hall. Shadow didn't know what all these medical terms meant; she was more worried about those…things.

"Monsters aren't real. You probably just had a somnambulating nightmare. If you have another nightmare, come up here. I'm usually awake most nights." Shadow nodded and let him help her to Watari's room. Now that her adrenaline had subsided, the pain was excruciating. Watari splinted her hand and wrapped up her foot. He had looked surprised to see L with another child. She kept seeing the nightmares, but waited a week to go bother L in the middle of the night. As he said, he was awake until three a.m. most nights.

_Those were the days we used to get some sleep._ Ameko laid down tiredly and willed herself to sleep.

* * *

**That's right. I copied it right out of the anime. Is that pathetic, or just thorough? Oh well. Somnambulism is sleepwalking, just in case you didn't know. The fifth metacarpal and proximal phalanx are, respectively, the bone in your palm and the pinky finger bone right above it. So no one has to look this info up. Thanks to x-Ameko Inazuma-x for your review, and because I can't remember if I've thanked her yet or not, thanks to fmafangirl1415. **

**Yes! The update came before Christmas! If I'm lucky, I might be able to type up an out-of-storyline Christmas chapter. Maybe. ^^**

**-ShadowInTheHall**


End file.
